Dining review: Hilltop 1892's new chef brings casual approach to menu

WITH ITS GLORIOUS setting perched atop an earthen peak, Novato's Hilltop 1892 grabs your attention from the valley below and again while heading up its long, winding driveway. A restaurant since the 1930s, Hilltop has a long-standing history as a dining destination for northern Marin. With history comes change, and Hilltop recently welcomed new executive chef Todd Davies after the departure of chef Nicolas Abrams.

Davies began his career working for American culinary legends such as Charlie Palmer and David Burke in New York before heading west to open restaurants with Jeremiah Tower (Star's in Palo Alto and JT's in San Francisco) and partner with Bradley Ogden at the Lark Creek Inn. He has helmed the kitchen at Hilltop since November.

Davies brings a number of new dishes to Hilltop's menu of American comfort food, including a Hangtown fry omelet ($15) at brunch, and it is these dishes that are most successful. Beer and bison burger ($15) was tender and juicy, no simple feat when preparing the lean meat. Moistened with Moylan's Irish Red Ale and plumped with oats, the burger crossed into playful territory with its topping of alfalfa sprouts and fluffy Pub cheese. Richly seasoned vadouvan lamb ragout ($21) was deeply flavorful, the cumin-spiked beans and zesty, jalapeño-spiked gremolata interlocking to build a jigsaw puzzle of flavor.

Other dishes were less successful. All of the ingredients were there for oven-roasted beet salad ($10) but the deep earthiness of the bull's blood beets grounded the dish, its citrus and verjus failing to lift the dish from its terrestrial encumbrance. Rhode Island-style calamari ($10), festooned with a confetti of chopped red and green chilies, tasted bland, the flavor not with the squid but on the side. Made with Alaskan cod, fish and chips ($19) was served crisp and hot yet the breading tasted only of breading. There was no "there" there.

Service, too, was uneven. Though our table received water and bread almost immediately, it took our server a full 15 minutes to acknowledge that we were seated. Wine glasses reached empty before an inquiry — from a different server — was made as to whether we would like more.

Hilltop works with local purveyors to bring in ingredients grown in Marin and follows the sustainable seafood standards set by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program. The hearty and approachable ethos set for the food carries over to the wine menu. Most wines on the list are grown and produced in Northern California with occasional forays north into Oregon (A to Z Pinot Gris, $9 and $29) and south to Monterey (Hess Shirtail Creek Chardonnay, $28).

The large dining room was restored a few years ago and is now dressed in cream-colored linens and warm woods. Chairs are comfortable and invite lingering. Heaters line the veranda. The wide-rail, rectangular bar comfortably divides the large restaurant into two distinct areas. Cheers from sports fans watching their favorite team on the TV can be heard in the dining room, but do not overwhelm any table's conversation. The vibe is dressy casual.

Known by many in Marin for its holiday hospitality, Hilltop has, in recent years, taken steps to become more approachable as a destination for everyday dining. New chef Davies is revamping the menu, adding more casual fare and taking the food in a heartier, less-formal direction. Perhaps a night where the service and the food are off can be chalked up to a holiday week. With a new chef just a few months into the role, there remains plenty of time to learn if Hilltop and Davies' vision of California country can take root in the hills of Novato.

Christina Mueller writes about food — restaurants, chefs, products and trends — for local and national publications as well as other industry clients. Send her an email at ij@christinamueller.com.